Mary became a certified diver in 1986 when she took a scuba class at Hofstra University. She was able to enjoy diving in several different locations before she became busy as a dentist, wife and mother. Twenty years passed before she found the time to pursue her passion for diving with 2 of her children. In the summer of 2010 she returned to diving when her 2 oldest children were certified. She began advanced dive training and made a commitment to dive as often as possible. She was awarded the 2011 WDHOF Kids Sea Camp Basic Dive Training Grant, which enabled her to purchase equipment and further her training beyond what she thought was possible. Because of the support from WDHOF and the inspiration the members provided, she decided to become a dive instructor. In March of 2014 she was certified as an Open Water Instructor with SSI. Working at Tiedemann’s Diving Center in Levittown, NY, with Ed Tiedemann and his quality staff of instructors, she is able to share her passion and inspire others to become divers. She finds it very rewarding to work with students and see their knowledge and skills develop. Her personal goal is to share the beauty of the Long Island waters with new divers. “I owe my success and accomplishment to WDHOF for having confidence in me and providing the inspiration to succeed. Thank you again for the training grant. Its value to me far exceeds the dollar amount. The grant opened up the world of diving to me and helped propel me beyond what I thought I could achieve. The scholarship is what led to the confidence to pursue a leadership role in diving. I am finding my role as a dive instructor very rewarding. WDHOF is an amazing organization that truly inspires women divers at every level. I am proud to be one of your scholarship winners and an associate member.”